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Canadian Intelligence Eh!

Canada-China relations in the post ‘two Michaels’ era

Episode 123 – A new book entitled ‘The Two Michaels’, is out and Borealis has a chat with one of the authors, Canadian Press journalist Mike Blanchfield.

When China seized the ‘two Michaels’ (Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig) in December 2018 it was clearly a retaliation for Canada’s arrest, at the behest of the US, of the CFO of Huawei.  Canadians were incensed at this violation of law and blamed China for it.   

A new book on this affair, entitled appropriately ‘The Two Michaels’, is out and Borealis has a chat with one of the authors, Canadian Press journalist Mike Blanchfield.

If the ins and outs of terrorism, extremism, national security and public safety are of interest to you, subscribe to receive free content by former Canadian intelligence analyst and author Phil Gurski on these issues.

Canadian Intelligence Eh

In a world of multiple voices and opinions it can be very hard to know where to turn.  One choice is to look to those who actually worked in counter-terrorism in the national security world. In these half-hour podcasts, 30-year Canadian intelligence veteran Phil Gurski is joined by a fascinating array of individuals with something meaningful to say about these issues as they provide insight into what they mean and what we need to do about them.

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About my guest Mike Blanchfield

Mike Blanchfield is the international affairs writer for The Canadian Press based in Ottawa. Blanchfield has been a journalist on Parliament Hill since 1998. His reporting has taken him across the world, including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He was the winner of the 2013 R. James Travers Foreign Corresponding Fellowship and travelled to Laos to investigate the deadly legacy of cluster bombs. He worked at the Ottawa Citizen for 22 years to 2009, and covered courts and police for eight years. He has graduated Carleton University twice, with his B.J. (hons) in 1987 and his M.J. in 2015.

About the host Phil Gurski

Phil Gurski is the President and CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting Ltd. and Programme Director for the Security, Economics and Technology (SET) hub at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute (PDI). He worked as a senior strategic analyst at CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) from 2001-2015, specializing in violent Islamist-inspired homegrown terrorism and radicalisation.

The Two Michaels

“The Two Michaels is a timely and highly-readable book – a gripping human drama that also tells a bigger story about the fast-changing world of international diplomacy, superpower rivalry, and the struggle to secure the Internet.”

Buy The Two Michaels


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By Phil Gurski

Phil Gurski is the President and CEO of Borealis Threat and Risk Consulting Ltd. Phil is a 32-year veteran of CSE and CSIS and the author of six books on terrorism.

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